Light fixtures are electrical devices that are used to create artificial light and/or illumination. Most light fixtures come in a variety of sizes and shapes and include some type of electrical light source or lamp. In some instances, a reflector is used for directing the light along with a lens and some type of outer shell or housing that can be used to orient the lamp alignment. Light fixtures come in all types of shapes and sizes depending on their use and application.
Over the past decade, the recreational vehicle (RV) industry has witnessed incredible growth enabling consumers freely travel with as many comforts of home as possible. By their very nature, RVs are frequently parked or moored in remote areas or locations where access to shore power is not conveniently available so leaving a lamp on for convenience or safety is not an option. In the past all that has been available for RV'ing are small lamps affixed in some manner inside the RV, to the underside of the ceiling, underside of the cabinets, walls, or in storage areas mounted either on wall or ceiling of the RV. These types of lights provide only illumination with an on/off switch and no other convenience for comfort or safety. However, no simple, conveniently adaptable lighting systems suitable for uniform wide-area illumination can be found in the market place.
A problem associated with currently available light fixtures is that each type of fixture has no option for increasing its utility. In the prior art lighting fixtures, there are no options available that can be easily added for either single or multiple light fixtures. When the fixture is initially purchased, options cannot be easily added and/or removed as lighting fixtures and their systems are not versatile. In cases where a lighting fixture is required for different lighting applications, finding a light for a specific functional task is often not available in any form. In use specific applications such as recreational vehicles (RV) or trailers, this can be even more problematic in view of the different features that can be required for the light fixture. Consequently, a great deal of additional utility could be provided in a light fixture by allowing its functionality to be easily changed based on customer or user requirements.
Skilled artisans will appreciate that elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements in the figures may be exaggerated relative to other elements to help to improve understanding of embodiments of the present invention.